Introductions

Details. Life prefers not to function when details are awry, and in most cases, life resorts to dysfunction. And that’s why we’re here.

So let’s start with the basics. Let me introduce myself. Dwuendedeleria. It’s my code name, my alias, my secret label, and for those who do know me or even claim to know me, I was christened with a seemingly normal Catholic name, born in the Philippines, and emigrated to the United States at the age of 10. That’s as far as I’d like to go in terms of introductions. Besides, this isn’t about me. This is about the 365 faces of you.

My writing professors have always told me to write about what I know, and I cannot pretend that I know a lot of things. Because in reality, maybe I really know nothing at all, except the encounters that I’ve had, the people I’ve met, and the experiences I’ve shared. So in a way, this is a tribute to you.

Each day I will write about someone I know. Some days I may offer more voices. I might even give you a name. Others might even recognize you. Some faces will remain unnamed and lurking in the shadows, attempting to come out. Or I might just give you an alter ego, a character I pulled out of a magician’s hat. I might please you with what I write or perhaps even offend you. But know now that with me, nothing is ever personal. Take it to heart or take it with a grain of salt, as they say. You might even decide that what I write is complete and utter bull. Or you might find yourself pulled into a world of your own face, your own voice. You realize that you and Face 54 share a certain truth that you’ve grappled with since the age of eight. You like cock, but not only your own. Face 2 might share a lie with Face 11. They both really do not want to commit suicide. Face 24 is blissfully in love, and for all the right reasons.

Details. But remember this isn’t for you, and in some ways, it really isn’t for me either. At the end of the day, it’s more about this human connection that I feel drawn to like an investigator’s unsolved murder mystery to all the Salanders of the world. There are so many faces with so many stories to tell, without a voice, without some form of acknowledgement.

So here you are, maybe in the middle of the day or at 3AM, sharing my love affair with the darkened night. Read with sensitivity and scrutiny, with trust and respect, with curiosity brimming and brewing like a shrew’s delicate blend. Their stories are your own, alive and continuous, happy and sad, funny and satirical, ironic and surreal.

It’s all in the details.

365 faces of you.